New Hampshire Removes Cap on Producer Raffles

New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan recently signed into law H.B. 171 (“An Act Relative to Rebating”) that would remove the annual $1,000 cap on contests, sweepstakes, raffles or drawings conducted by insurance producers in connection with the marketing or promotion of insurance products.

Under current New Hampshire law, it is prohibited for a producer to hold contests, sweepstakes, raffles or drawings where the prize values cumulatively exceed $1,000 during a 12-month period. However, insurance companies such as direct writers are exempt from this limit.

The new law, which was signed by Hassan on June 12 and is scheduled to take effect Jan. 1, 2016, will remove the annual cap on such contests for all persons.

The Professional Insurance Agents of New Hampshire (PIANH), an insurance trade group that helped draft and introduce H.B. 171 during this year’s New Hampshire legislative session, applauded Hassan for signing the measure.

“PIANH supports an insurance market that fosters a fair and competitive environment between insurance producers and direct writers,” said PIANH President John Obrey. “We applaud the General Court and the governor for enacting legislation to help professional, independent insurance agents compete on an even playing field against direct writers.”

When holding these events, producers and carriers would still need to adhere to a set of requirements to qualify for exceptions to the state’s anti-rebating law. The organizers must ensure that there is no participation cost to entrants. The organizers must also make sure that the event is open to consumers who are not policyholders and that consumers are not required to buy any policy in order to be eligible to enter the contest and receive a prize.